Assignment 2: Future of Virtual Reality in Television & Films

Virtual reality (VR) technology is steadily paving its way from video games to short films, and I believe that eventually it will even be able to reach the mainstream audience through broadcast television. The immersive nature of VR technology will help the audience to look at the content more than what is just available as a form of narrative. The use of stereoscopic visuals, and wider fields of view of visual displays is highly immersive and impactful.

Edward Miller, head of visuals at 360-degree video app Immersive.ly., brought the idea of telehora to news journalism by creating a 360-degree video on the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. This was the first time a world news event was captured for the purpose of viewing with a virtual reality headset, such as the Oculus Rift or the Samsung Gear VR.One of the major issues with using virtual reality headsets is the motion sickness they are known to cause. This is most prevalent when wearers of VR headsets experience a sudden switch from a stationary to a moving scene. This is something that developers will have to overcome by developing new ways of telling stories without the need for sudden movements.

“Game of Thrones” is now both a TV show and a video game. And now, it’s also part of this Oculus Rift. The developers are creating more things like the HBO experience.